heartlines: kaneki ken x reader
by rizes
Summary: You're just a regular ghoul, nothing more. Being alone for most of your life, you didn't expect to meet such a sweet one-eye one fateful day. You never would have expected him to become so important to you, and neither did he.


Kaneki Ken X Ghoul!Reader

Chapter 1

"Kaneki, we have a ghoul customer. Can you serve her for me?"

Said ebony haired male paused what he was doing at the back counter and looked back at Touka, giving her a curt nod. He picked up his notepad and made his way around the counter. The scent of ghoul filled his nose, he didn't even need to ask Touka where the ghoul was sitting.

She sat at the far back corner with a book in one hand and her [F/C] phone in the other. Her [H/C] locks were a little messy, and she wore a black hoodie and white shorts, along with black knee-high socks. Kaneki thought she looked like the most normal-looking ghoul he's ever seen.

He walked up to her and put on a light smile, "Hello, may I take your order?"

She seemed to jump when he talked, and she averted her wide eyes towards him, her breath hitched. Once she realized he was one of the workers here, she relaxed and nodded slowly. She figured this was the one-eye she had been hearing about lately. He had an odd scent, similar to a female ghoul's yet he still had the faint mouth-watering smell of a human.

"I heard this place brews coffee good for ghouls," She murmured, glancing away, "I want whatever coffee I can drink, please."

Kaneki nodded and wrote down the special coffee name on the pad, keeping the soft smile on his face. "My name's Kaneki, I'll be serving you today." He asserted, clicking his pen and gazing at her again, "Do you live around here?"

She stayed silent, and Kaneki instantly regretted asking such a question so out of the blue.

"I-I'm sorry!" Kaneki stammered, his shoulders tensing, "I was just wondering, because we like to know which ghouls will be visiting regularly…"

She kept her eyes locked on her book, a tiny smile appearing on her lips, "It's okay. I wouldn't call it living, but I do wander around these parts."

Kaneki didn't understand what she meant, but he knew better than to ask her anymore intrusive questions. So, he nodded and walked away to make her order.

While he was brewing her coffee, he couldn't stop thinking about her. She had a strange personality that he usually didn't see in ghouls. He hadn't known any other ghoul other than Rize that liked reading, either. Unless she's a blood-thirsty, crazed binge eater under that calm disguise just like the bespectacled beauty was. He wished he had caught her name.

So immersed in his thoughts, he wasn't paying attention and he was brought back to his senses when hot liquid made contact with his hand. Looking down, he realized he had poured too much coffee into the cup, overflowing it over the top. Kaneki hissed in pain and pulled his hand away, waving it slightly and grabbing a nearby towel to clean the seaming liquid off.

"Dumbass, how did that happen?" Nishiki walked up behind him, glaring down at the mess before locking eyes with the shorter male, "You never mess up when you're making coffee."

"Sorry." Kaneki muttered, using the dry side of the towel to clean the spilled coffee off of the counter, "I wasn't paying attention."

Nishiki crossed his arms and let out an annoyed sigh, "That's [Name]'s order, isn't it?"

Kaneki glanced at him, "Huh?"

_Is [Name] her name? _

"The ghoul customer." Nishiki mumbled, exchanging his gaze from him to the [H/C] girl sitting at the corner, "Her name's [L. Name] [Name]. She's friends with Kimi." He stayed quiet for a few seconds before smirking and looking back at him, "You better hurry up and make her a new cup. She's scary when she's mad."

Kaneki tensed up, turning to the bespectacled boy with a worried shadow beginning to cover his face, "W-What?"

Nishiki laughed, shaking his head and patting him on the shoulder, "I'm just kidding, Ken! [Name]'s one of the nicest ghouls you'll ever meet." Kaneki's shoulders relaxed and he exhaled, "She doesn't talk much, though. Whenever I see her, she's either reading a book or on that phone of hers."

Kaneki glanced at her before smiling and beginning to remake her coffee, "I see."

Nishiki watched his hands work for a few moments before coming to realization and breaking into soft chuckles, "What, you like her?"

Kaneki's face flushed and he let out a tight gasp, the grip on the cup stiffening. Nishiki laughed again and leaned back, using one hand to clutch his torso and the other to point a finger at him as he snickered.

He doesn't even know the girl, why would he like her? But still, the thought made his cheeks turn a faint shade of pink.

Kaneki frowned, "S-Shut up!"

"Here you go, [L/N]-san."

"H-How do you know my name?"

Kaneki froze, the freshly brewed cup of coffee still in his hand, "Oh, sorry! Another worker here told me your name...did you know Kimi's boyfriend works here?"

[Name] perked up when her friend's name mentioned, "Nishiki? I heard he just started working at a coffee place, I didn't know it was this one."

Kaneki smiled and placed the cup in front of her. [Name] set down her book and said a quick thank you to the male before he retreated back to the counter. He picked up his notepad again and pretended he was writing down information, but he actually just wanted to keep [Name] in view so he could see her reaction to trying their coffee for the first time. Kaneki tried not to make it obvious, casting quick glances towards her direction every now and then.

When she finally took a drink, he saw how her eyes lit up. He couldn't help but smile unconsciously as she kept drinking, raising her head to drink every last drop of the sweet hot beverage. When she finally set down the cup, she wiped her mouth with the back of her hand. That was the first time Kaneki saw a sweet, genuine smile on her face.

But it quickly disappeared when four human teenage girls began chattering at the table a few spots away from her.

"Did she really just drink it all that fast? What the hell?"

"She's weird. Smiling to herself like that."

"Do you think we should get her help?"

They broke out in snickers and Kaneki could tell that [Name] had heard every word. Her face turned pale with embarrassment and she looked away, fidgeting in her seat.

The whole scene outraged Kaneki. [Name] hadn't done anything wrong, she just wanted to enjoy their coffee like everyone else did. And it had made Kaneki's heart feel warm when she had enjoyed her drink so much. It was probably the first thing she's had other than human flesh that she didn't have to gag up soon after. Why do these girls have to ruin this experience for her?

The teenagers continued spitting hurtful remarks, and Kaneki couldn't take it anymore. Slamming down his notepad, he made his way around the counter. The anger on his face must have been evident because Touka noticed his dark aura and she tried calling out to him, but he ignored her and walked straight up to the girls.

He stopped right in front of their table, flinging a finger towards them, "Why do you think it's okay to bully someone you don't even know? What's wrong with you?"

The girls, not noticing his arrival, all whipped their heads around in unison and stared at the ebony haired male, shocked.

"Learn to respect other customers or I'll get you all kicked out! Do you understand?"

They all quickly nodded, clearly taken aback by this tall worker with an eyepatch. He still had a lot to say to them, but he figured that was enough to get them to stop and he lowered his hand, turning towards the corner where [Name] was sitting.

But she had already gotten up, her book in hand and her face ducked as she sprinted past him. Kaneki could see her face red with embarrassment as she ran by, and he immediately felt ashamed at having such an outburst. It had only brought more negative attention on [Name].

"[N-Name]-san!" Kaneki stammered, reaching out to her but she had already made it out of the door.

He watched the door shut, and his breath hitched as he realized the whole shop had become silent, and all eyes were fixed on him. Touka let out an irritated groan and she crossed her arms, shaking her head. Nishiki, who had been watching from behind the counter, gazed at him with cold eyes, but Kaneki could see he was holding back chuckles. Even Hinami looked surprised, sneaking up to stand behind Touka and stare at Kaneki along with everyone else.

Kaneki felt like disappearing right that second.

"Why'd it get all quiet?" A familiar high-pitched voice piped up.

Kaneki turned to see Koma looking around, a puzzled look clouding his gaze. Everyone seemed to finally notice the uncomfortable silence and the usual soft talking started again.

Kaneki silently thanked Koma for saving him from that awkward situation. But as he smiled at the male and walked back towards the counter, he still felt hot with guilt.

_I made a fool out of [Name]. I have to at least apologize…_

[Name] only felt worse as it started to rain. She pulled her hood over her head and kept sprinting down the side of the street, clutching her book.

The whole affair at Anteiku still left her embarrassed, even though she had ran quite a distance from it. She hated how she was so prone to insults like that. Kaneki was just trying to defend her, but it honestly just made [Name] feel worse. She didn't want to feel like the burden.

Her clothes started becoming soaked, making them stick onto her uncomfortably. She finally turned into an alley, which had a small dry area covered by the roof of the apartments beside it. [Name] made her way over to the dry spot and set down her bag and her book, dropping down to sit beside them.

[Name] wiped her face with the back of her cold hand before ringing the water out of her [H/C] locks. She wanted nothing more than to go back to the warm atmosphere at Anteiku, but she knew she'd just be met with stares and probably an angry Kaneki. [Name] began replaying the whole scene in her head. She must have looked so dumb, running out without a word like that. At least she had already paid for her drink. But she had been planning on asking for another cup, before one of those girls opened her mouth and everything started going downhill.

It had been the best thing [Name] had ever tasted. Being familiar with only the taste of blood in her mouth, the burst of warm flavor on her tongue making her heart skip a beat. She had always dreamed what Anteiku's coffee would taste like, but she had never had enough money to try it for herself. When she finally did, it was so much better than she expected it to be.

Suddenly, water began falling on her again. Gazing up, [Name] realized the rain had slid right off of the apartment's roof, and it was raining right on her again.

She sighed as she pulled her knees to her chest and covered her face in her arms. _Great._

[Name] stayed in the same position for what felt like half an hour. The rain gradually got worse, and [Name] thought she heard thunder in the distance. She gritted her teeth and shut her eyes, trying to think of nice thoughts that might warm her up. But nothing came to mind, and the only thing she felt was the rain sliding off her sides.

Then, the rain stopped. Confusion struck [Name], because she was still able to hear the storm continue around her. Why had it only stopped raining on her?

"[N-Name]-san."

[Name] jolted her face out of her arms at the sound of the familiar voice. Kaneki stood over her, an umbrella in his hand. He stood in front of her, using the umbrella to shield both of them from the icy droplets.

She just stared, completely shocked and at the same time puzzled to see him here. His olive eyes were soft, but they glowed with concern as they laid on her figure sitting before him.

"I-I'm sorry…" He started, his voice quiet against the rain around them "I know I'm probably the last person you want to see right now but...I'm really sorry."

[Name] stiffened, her [E/C] orbs widening. She should be the one apologizing, not him. Did he really track her down just to say this to her?

"It's fine…" [Name] finally managed to breathe out, averting her eyes from his.

Kaneki was quiet for a few seconds before he spoke up again, "What are you doing out here? I can walk you home, if you want."

[Name] frowned. She didn't know what to tell him, but it seemed to slip her tongue by itself.

"I don't live anywhere."

Kaneki stared at her, pity shadowing his gaze as he pursed his lips. The uncomfortable silence that fell over them made [Name] realize how vulnerable and weak she must look in his eyes. She had to be one of the post worthless ghouls in this ward.

"Why do you even bother pretending you care?" The words left [Name]'s mouth before she could stop herself.

Kaneki's breath hitched, "I-I do care, [Name]-chan."

[Name] hid her face in her hands and let out a ragged breath. She didn't cry, though. Oh. how weak Kaneki would see her if she let a tear fall now.

"I want to help…" Kaneki murmured, his gaze raking towards the ground.

[Name] opened her eyes and raised her head, looking at the ebony-haired male. He didn't look at her as he raised his free hand to brush his finger over the side of his chin, "I really do…"

[Name] felt like the rain around them ceased, and everything around them turned to nothing and it was just her and Kaneki. She felt her face flush when Kaneki made eye-contact with her again, a gentle light sparkling in his light eyes. He cracked a small smile and lowered his hand, instead holding it out towards [Name].

[Name] stared at his palm, confused. Her [E/C] orbs met his again and she was surprised to see the rain had stopped, and sun had come out again. The rays of sunshine were hitting Kaneki's face just right, making his fair skin appear to be glowing as his smile widened.

"[Name]-san, do you want to live at Anteiku?"


End file.
